Backgrounder: Employment Equity Achievement Awards 2024

The Employment Equity Achievement Awards recognize federally regulated private-sector employers and federal contractors for their efforts in implementing employment equity in their workplaces. Since 2016, the Government of Canada has recognized over 80 employers across the country. This year, the Minister of Labour presented 13 awards to 11 employers in the five categories.

OUTSTANDING COMMITMENT TO EMPLOYMENT EQUITY

This award recognizes employers who have demonstrated outstanding commitment in implementing their employment equity plans by instituting measures to remove barriers, adopting special measures and/or accommodations to correct underrepresentation of persons of designated groups and establishing positive policies and practices to create an environment that supports a diverse workforce. The Outstanding Commitment to Employment Equity award goes to:

Canada Post

In 2022, Canada Post provided nation-wide training courses and development opportunities to employees. This initiative resulted in over 20,000 course completions that outline discrimination and harassment, human rights, unconscious bias, as well as respect and fairness. They have also:

• launched an Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Charter that outlines their zero tolerance of racism and discrimination of any kind;
• hired six specialized advisors to advance their diversity and inclusion efforts in recruitment and onboarding and to meet regional employment equity goals related to Indigenous peoples and persons with disabilities;
• worked with their insurance provider on greater attention to mental health and cognitive therapies, such as access to online platforms to support those dealing with anxiety and depression; and
• rolled out an early intervention process for injuries at work to accommodate employees who temporarily cannot perform their full duties, but who are able to perform other valuable work.
   

Securiguard Services

Securiguard Services launched Securiguard University in 2022, an innovative platform designed to empower team members by enhancing their skills, fostering knowledge retention and deepening their understanding of topics related to workplace diversity and inclusion. Throughout 2022, they participated in several in-person career events across Canada to engage with candidates, share information about their current training programs and showcase the diverse range of opportunities available within the organization. They have also:

• been dedicated to making the basic security training course accessible and beneficial for all candidates;
• trained 70 individuals of Indigenous descent in basic security training through their Indigenous Employment and Training Program;
• covered in full the cost of a one-year security workers’ license for Indigenous candidates;
• maintained the highest representation of Indigenous employees at their North Coast Branch at 38%; and
• hired over 645 women throughout 2022, a 3.5% increase in their organization compared to the last two years.

INNOVATION

This award recognizes employers who have been innovative in the implementation of employment equity. This may include creativity in the:

• design and implementation of measures aimed at removing employment barriers;
• adoption of special measures and/or accommodations;
• establishment of positive policies or practices;
• implementation of forward-thinking human resources practices; and
• development of new or unique initiatives.

The Innovation award goes to:

CIBC

CIBC continues to seek innovative solutions to reimagine the workplace by leveraging inclusive design, prioritizing accessibility and enhancing the employee-client experience for those who have faced barriers to employment and banking. They have also:

• expanded in-house support services, including American Sign Language interpretation with a full-time resource translating and captioning for their employees;
• supported the advancement of Indigenous talent in near-executive roles by embedding equity and systemic inclusion into talent processes and providing hiring managers with curated shortlists through their slating process to increase candidates from communities under-represented at CIBC; and
• leveraged external talent partnerships, such as Lime Connect, the largest network of high-potential university students and professionals who live with disabilities, and Specialisterne, an international leader in harnessing the talents of people on the autism spectrum, to attract, advance and retain persons with disabilities and other members of under-represented communities.

Ontario Power Generation

Committed to being a workplace where all employees can thrive, Ontario Power Generation launched their 2022-2027 Multi-Year Accessibility Plan to make the organization more accessible. The plan includes initiatives that exceeded the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. They have also:

• launched an innovative employment equity dashboard which compiles aggregated, displayed and filtered employee demographic data. They have used the dashboard to ensure a data-informed approach to target women, Indigenous peoples, racialized people and persons with disabilities, who are under-represented in the regions and industry;
• created a specialized recruitment team to focus on building and maintaining partnerships with community organizations that support equity-seeking individuals; and
• modernized their Mentoring Plus program with an expanded goal to match equity-seeking mentees with executive leaders.

RST Sunbury

RST Sunbury continues to focus their efforts to change the perception that the road transportation sector is traditionally a male-dominated field. They have created a Gender Movement Dashboard to visualize promotions of women across the organization and track female hires and exits at all levels, with the intention of including other designated groups down the road. They continue the pursuit to breaking down barriers and cultivating an environment of inclusion to ensure that every person has the opportunity to thrive.

SAP Canada

Through their autism inclusion programs, such as the Autism at Work program supporting over 240 colleagues on the autism spectrum across 16 countries, SAP Canada continues to inspire organizations to become autism inclusive. They have also:

• shared best practices and created a network with the SAP Autism Inclusion Pledge to support other organizations to start or accelerate their autism and neurodiversity inclusion journey;
• continued their annual support for the Els for Autism Golf Challenge, in place since 2010—raising over $150,000 to provide people on the autism spectrum and their families with the opportunity and hope for a bright future;
• partnered with Disability:IN to create and sponsor a new award category, the 2023 Autism Inclusion Company of the Year; and
• launched SAP Pro Bono for Economic Equity in Canada in 2022 to support Indigenous employees to leverage their professional skills and contribute towards Canada’s Indigenous economy, focusing on five Indigenous-owned companies. The program was a success and all companies reported feeling confident in their business’ future growth.

SECTOR DISTINCTION

This award recognizes employers who are inspirational role models and championed employment equity in their sector. They have demonstrated a strong commitment and achieved success in implementing employment equity in their organization. The Sector Distinction award goes to:

Dexterra Group

Launched in 2000, Dexterra Group’s Outland Youth Employment Program is a national network of innovative education, training and work opportunities for Indigenous youth. The Program is the cornerstone of Dexterra Community Initiatives, a non-profit incorporated to inspire action and develop opportunities with and for the communities wherever they operate or have partnerships. The Program goes beyond the boundaries of their organization and seeks to elevate their industry. It provides participants and graduates across Canada year-round support such as education, scholarship or bursary supports, housing, transportation and childcare solutions, job placements and internships. Thanks to this Program and other initiatives, such as partnering with Agilec and local community employment offices, select colleges and universities, Dexterra Group have been promoting employment opportunities for youth across Canada.

EMPLOYMENT EQUITY CHAMPION

This award recognizes an executive or executive team of an employer for their proven record of championing employment equity within their organization as well as the recipient’s overall contribution to diversity and inclusiveness in the workplace. The Employment Equity Champion award goes to:

Sloane Muldoon
Bank of Nova Scotia
Senior Vice President of Global HR Services

Sloane Muldoon has enhanced the Bank of Nova Scotia’s dedication and resources to advance employment equity and accessibility by expanding the leadership team and creating new roles and subject-matter expertise to better support employees. She has also:

• championed accessibility in the workplace by serving as Chair of the Employee Accessibility Executive Council and by enabling bank-wide accessibility initiatives to improve the onboarding experience of employees with disabilities and address stigma;
• advanced efforts towards truth and reconciliation by establishing an Indigenous Peoples Center of Excellence and expanding a team focused on supporting the inclusion of Indigenous employees;
• championed the expansion of a Sponsorship Program that pairs mid-level employees from designated groups with senior-level employees who use their influence and advocacy to obtain positive career impacts for the employee they sponsor; and
• served as executive sponsor and co-chair of the Scotiabank Women’s Initiative, which helps women-identified business owners grow their businesses and advance their careers.

Sean St. John
National Bank of Canada
Executive Vice President, Managing Director, Head of Fixed Income and Co-Head of Risk Management Solutions

Inclusion and diversity are at the heart of the social contribution and daily life of Sean St. John. He has been a member of the Bank’s Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Council since its inception in 2019 and he serves as the Bank's Indigenous Lead. He represents the National Bank's vision for inclusion and diversity and is bringing its objectives to life through initiatives and concrete actions. He has also:

• committed to the social and economic advancement of women and First Nations and the Progressive Aboriginal Relations certification program;
• volunteered with the Right to Play’s Aboriginal Program for the past 10 years, where he is co-chair and board member;
• led successful fundraising campaigns in support of vulnerable children, cancer research and Indigenous youth; and
• lead the creation of a new employee-resource group for building relationships between colleagues and allies of Indigenous peoples.
   

INDIGENOUS RECONCILIATION

Introduced in 2023, this award recognizes employers who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous people. This may include:

• outreach and partnerships with local Indigenous communities;
• innovative approaches to Indigenous recruitment;
• employee training programs on Indigenous reconciliation; and
• supporting engagement with Indigenous communities and stakeholders on employment equity.

The Indigenous Reconciliation award goes to:

AtkinsRéalis

With its unwavering commitment and ongoing work to improve their relations with Indigenous businesses and communities across Canada, AtkinsRéalis made Indigenous relations part of their national priorities and strategies. They have:

• partnered with Indigenous and Community Engagement, an Indigenous company, to develop a reconciliation-based approach to support Indigenous socio-economic development in Canada and help close the infrastructure and clean energy gap Indigenous communities face;
• rolled out a mandatory Indigenous Cultural Awareness Training for all employees in Canada;
• launched a ReconciliACTION Plan in Canada, which details actions to take between now and 2030, such as procurement, recruitment, employee education and experience, partnerships and philanthropy;
• created an Indigenous Circle Employee Resource Group for Indigenous employees and their allies to share information, educate and collaborate;
• launched an Indigenous Success Scholarship Program, which provides five scholarships of $5000;
• created an Indigenous Supplier Network Procurement database, which now includes a growing number of over 2388 Indigenous businesses across Canada;
• developed an Indigenous Persons Talent Pool Information Management System; and
• dedicated a single point of contact to meet with Indigenous job seekers and receive information from potential Indigenous candidates.

CIBC

In response to Call to Action #92 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, CIBC established a Reconciliation Framework to embed reconciliation into its strategies. They have also:

• launched a national webinar series to meet the specific financial needs of Chiefs, Senior Council band members and the broader community;
• added nine Indigenous languages to their list of languages spoken or signed for various advisors roles;
• converted the leave for Indigenous employees to participate in traditional practices from unpaid to paid to promote belonging and retention; and
• continued to improve the Indigenous Housing Loan Program, in consultation with First Nations leadership, to address the housing shortage within Indigenous communities.

Dexterra Group

Dexterra Group supports the interests of Indigenous peoples through inclusive business partnerships, youth training and education programs and employment. Their collaboration with over 80 Indigenous partnerships across Canada allows them to work collaboratively to promote economic growth, local employment and opportunities for Indigenous-owned businesses and suppliers.

Formed in 2022, their Indigenous Education and Engagement Committee provides information, education and awareness to their employees around the rich cultures and histories of Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Thanks to the committee and other programs, such as the Outland Youth Employment Program, Dexterra Group has a well-established reputation as a subject-matter expert in Indigenous youth employment and training throughout Canada. Member of their Board of Directors, Tabatha Bull, President and CEO of the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, has put her unique perspective and insight into the company’s Indigenous initiatives so they can continue to grow.

Trans Mountain

As part of their base business operations, Trans Mountain’s efforts towards reconciliation include meaningfully engaging with more than 140 Indigenous communities and groups, as well as launching The Journey from Competency to Cultural Safety, a mandatory Indigenous training video co-developed with an Indigenous creative consultant. They have also:

• added Indigenous Reconciliation initiatives to their corporate scorecard;
• established a multi-disciplinary Indigenous Reconciliation Taskforce;
• engaged and included local Indigenous groups in their full-scale emergency response exercises;
• launched a Project Management Certificate for Indigenous Women program;
• partnered with the Outland Youth Employment Program to help employ Indigenous youth in the communities where they operate;
• designed an Indigenous Operator Trainee Program in collaboration with Indigenous communities and launched extensive recruitment activities, such as advertising job opportunities directly with Indigenous communities;
• created an Indigenous Employee and Training Retention Plan, including skill development plans for Indigenous workers; and
• increased Indigenous representation in their permanent workforce from 2.7% in 2021 to 3.5% in 2022.